U.K. Defends Detention of Brazilian Under Terrorism Act

By Eddie Buckle and Raymond Colitt -
Aug 20, 2013

U.K. Home Secretary Theresa May said
police acted correctly in using anti-terrorism laws to detain
the Brazilian partner of a journalist who broke news on U.S.
surveillance programs, after Brazil called it unjustified.

“It’s absolutely right that if the police believe that
somebody is in possession of highly-sensitive stolen information
that could help terrorists, that could risk lives, lead to a
potential loss of life, that the police are able to act,” May
told U.K. broadcasters today. “The decision as to whether or
not to arrest or charge somebody is entirely a matter for the
police. I as home secretary don’t tell the police who to stop or
not to stop.”

David Miranda was held for questioning for as long as nine
hours at London’s Heathrow airport Aug. 18 under the U.K.
Terrorism Act. His partner, Glenn Greenwald, who reported for
the Guardian newspaper on former security contractor Edward Snowden’s allegations of U.S. surveillance programs, said he
intends to publish revelations on U.K. intelligence after the
incident.

The detention “was legally and procedurally sound,”
London’s Metropolitan Police Service said in an e-mailed
statement late last night. “The procedure was reviewed
throughout to ensure the examination was both necessary and
proportionate.”

May said today she’d been informed in advance of the
possibility Miranda would be stopped for questioning.

U.S. Filmmaker

Miranda was returning to Rio de Janeiro from Berlin, where
he had spent a week with Laura Poitras, a U.S. filmmaker who has
worked on the National Security Agency stories with Snowden and
Greenwald, the Guardian reported. The U.K. newspaper said it
paid for Miranda’s flights and that, while he isn’t a Guardian
employee, he often assists Greenwald in his work.

Lawyers for Miranda said they will challenge the legality
of the detention and asked the Home Office not to distribute any
material seized on Aug. 18. Miranda told Brazil’s Globo TV that
British authorities confiscated his computer and mobile
telephone.

“We are most concerned about the unlawful way in which
these powers were used and the chilling effect this will have on
freedom of expression,” Kate Goold, a criminal lawyer at
London-based Bindmans LLP, said in a statement.

Brazil’s Foreign Ministry expressed “grave concern” over
the Heathrow incident, according to a statement on its website
yesterday. “This measure is without justification since it
involves an individual against whom there are no charges that
can legitimize the use of that legislation,” the ministry said.

Snowden, a 30-year-old former security contractor, released
a trove of classified documents in June that showed efforts by
the NSA to log domestic and international phone calls and track
electronic messages on social media. Facing criminal charges in
the U.S., Snowden received temporary asylum in Russia, straining
relations between the countries.